April 26, 2019

IBS relief with acupuncture

As mentioned in our March newsletter April has been a busy month for health awareness events including IBS awareness month.

Many people have found relief from IBS symptoms using acupuncture. This therapy can help symptoms by:-

Providing pain relief
• Regulating the motility of the digestive tract
• Raising the sensory threshold of the gut
• Increasing parasympathetic tone (Schneider 2007b). Stress activates the sympathetic nervous system, which can stimulate colon spasms, resulting in abdominal discomfort. In people with this condition, the colon can be oversensitive to the smallest amount of conflict or stress. Acupuncture activates the opposing parasympathetic nervous system, which initiates the relaxation or ‘rest and digest’ response.
• Reducing anxiety and depression. Acupuncture can alter the brain’s mood chemistry, increases production of serotonin and endorphins (Han 2004), helping to combat these negative affective states.

Acupuncture can be safely and effectively combined with any other forms of treatment.